hot always being paid, that he conceived difguft at the inclination. The theory which he profeffed, "that it was impoffible to afk a gen-, tleman for money," he perfectly confirmed by the practice; and he never violated this feeling to the latest hour of his life. On this fubject, which regards the manners of Mr Elwes, gladly I feize an opportunity to fpeak of them with the praife that is their due. They were fuch-fo gentle, fo attentive, fo gentlemanly, and fo engaging, that rudeness could not ruffle them, nor ftrong ingratitude break their obfervance. He retained this peculiar feature of the old court to the laft; but he had a praife far beyond this he had the moft gallant difregard of his own perfon, and all care about himself, I ever witneffed in man. The inftances in younger life, in the most imminent perfonal hazard, are innumerable but when age had defpoiled him of his activity, and might have rendered care and attention about himself natural, he knew not what they were. He wished no one to affift him" He was as young as ever he could walk-he could ride, and he could dance; and he hoped he -fhould not give trouble, even when he was old." He was, at that time, feventy five. It is curious to remark, how he contrived to mingle small attempts at faving, with objects of the most unbounded diffipation. After fitting up a whole night at play for thoufands, with the most fashionable and profligate men of the time, amidst fplendid rooms, gilt fofas, wax lights, and waiters attendant on his call, he would walk out about four in the morning, nottowards home, but into Smithfield, to meet his own cattle, which were coming to market from Thaydon hall, a farm of his in Effex! There would this fame man, forgetful of the fcenes he had juft left, ftand, in the VOL. XI. No. 64. cold or rain, bartering with a carcafs butcher for a "hilling!, Sometimes, when the cattle did not arrive at the hour he expected, he would walk on in the mire to meet them; and, more than once, has gone on foot the whole way to his farm without ftopping, which was feventeen miles from London, after fitting up the whole night. Had every man been of the mind of Mr Elwes, the race of innkeepers must have perifhed, and poftchaifes have been returned back to thofe who made them; for it was the bufinefs of his life to avoid both. He always travelled on horfeback. To fee him fetting out on a journey was a matter truly curious; his first care was to put two or three eggs, boited hard, into his great coat pocket, or any scraps of bread which he found baggage he never tookthen, mounting one of his hunters, his next attention was to get out of London, into that road where turnpikes were the feweft. Then, ftopping under any hedge where grafs prefented itself for his horfe, and a little water for himself, he would fit down and refresh himself and his horfe together. Here prefenting a new species of bramin, worth five hundred thoufand pounds.. The chief refidence of Mr Elwes, at this period of his life, was in Berkfhire, at his own feat at Marcham. Here it was he had two fons born, who inherit the greatest part of his property, by a will made about the year 1785. The keeping fox-hounds was the only inftance, in the whole life of Mr Elwes, of his ever facrificing money to pleasure, and may be felected, as the only period when he forgot the cares, the perplexities, and the regret, which his wealth occafioned. But even here every thing was done in the most frugal manner. Scrub, in the Beaux Stratagem, when com pared with Mr Elwes' huntfman, had an idle life of it. This famous huntf man man might have fixed an epoch in the hiftory of fervants; for, in a morning, getting up at four o'clock, he milked the cows he then prepared breakfast for MrElwes, or any friends he might have with him; then flipping on a green coat, he hurried into the ftable, faddled the horses, got the hounds out of the kennel, and away they went into the field. After the fatigues of hunting, he refreshed himfelf by rubbing down two or three horfes as quickly as he could; then running into the houfe to lay the cloth, and wait at dinner; then hurrying again into the stable to feed the horfes-diverfified with an interlude of the cows again to milk, the dogs to feed, and eight hunters to litter down for the night. What may appear extraordinary, the man lived for fome years, though his mafter ufed often to call him " an idle dog!" and fay, "he wanted to be paid for doing nothing" In the penury of Mr Elwes, there was fomething that feemed like a judgment from heaven. All earthly comforts he voluntarily denied himfelf: he would walk home in the rain, in London, fooner than pay a fhilling for a coach he would fit in wet cloaths fooner than have a fire to dry them he would eat his provifions in the laft ftage of putrefaction fooner than have a fresh joint from the butchers; and he wore a wig for above a fortnight, which I faw him pick up out of a rut in a lane where we were riding. This was the last extremity of laudable economy: for, to all appearance, it was the caft-off wig of fome beggar !-The day in which I firit beheld him in this ornament, exceeded all power of farce, for he had torn a brown coat, which he generally wore, and had been obliged to have recourfe to the old cheft of Sir Jervaife, from whence he had felected a full-dreffed green velvet coat, with flash fleeves; and there he fat at dinner in boots, the aforefaid green vel. vet, his own white hair appearing round his face, and this black ftray wig at the top of all. A Captain Roberts, who was with us at the time, and who had a great respect for Mr Elwes, was yet unable to fit at dinner for laughing. When this inordinate paffion for faving did not interfere, there are, upon record, fome kind offices and very active fervice, undertaken by Mr Elwes. He would go far and long to ferve thofe who applied to him; and give-however ftrange the word from him-would give himself great trouble to be of ufe. Thefe inftances are gratifying to felect-it is plucking the fweet briar and the rofe from the weeds that overfpread the garden. When Mr Elwes was at Marcham, two very ancient maiden ladies, in his neighbourhood, had, for fome neglect, incurred the displeasure of the spiritual court, and were threatened with immediate "6 excommunication." The whole import of the word they did not perfectly understand, but they had heard fomething about ftanding in a church and a penance, and their ideas immediately ran upon a white fheet. They concluded, if they once got into that, it was all over with them, and as the excommunication was to take place the next day, away they hurried to Mr Elwes, to know how they could make fubmiffion, and how the fentence might be prevented. No time was to be loft. Mr Elwes did that which, fairly speaking, not one man in five thoufand would have done; he had his horfe faddled, and putting, according to ufual custom, a couple of hard eggs in his pocket, he fet out for London that evening, and reached it early enough the next morning to notify the fubmiffion of the culprit damfels. Riding 60 miles in the night, to confer a favour on two antiquated virgins, to whom he had no particular obligation, was really, what not one man in five thousand would have done : but where perfon al fatigue could ferve, Mr Elwes never spared it. The ladies were so overjoyed-fo thankful: So much trouble and expence!--What returns could they make? To cafe their confciences on this head, an old Irish gentleman, their neighbour, who knew Mr Elwes's mode of travelling, wrote these words" My Dears, is it expence you are talking of? fend him fixpence, and he gains twopence by the journey." Mr Elwes had now refided about thirteen years in Suffolk, when the conteft for Berkshire prefented itfelf on the diffolution of the Parliament; and when, to preferve the peace of that county, he was nominated by Lord Craven. Mr Elwes, though he had retired from public bufinefs for fome years, had ftill left about him fome of the feeds of more active life, and he agreed to the propofal. It came farther enhanced to him, by the agreement, that he was to be brought in by the freeholders for nothing. I believe all he did was dining at the ordinary at Reading; and he got into Parliament for eighteen-pence! Though a new man, Mr Elwes could not be called a young member; for he was at this time nearly fixty years old when he thus entered on public life. But he was in poffeffion of all his activity; and preparatory to his appearance on the boards of, St Stephen's Chapel, he used to attend conftantly, during the races and other public meetings, all the great towns where his voters refided. At the different affemblies, he would dance amongst the youngest to the laft, after riding over on horfeback, and frequently in the rain, to the place of meeting. A gentleman who was one night ftanding by, obferved on the extraordinary agility of fo old a man"O! that is nothing," replied another; "for Mr Elwes, to do this, rode twenty miles in the rain, with his shoes ftuck into his boots, and his bag-wig in his pocket." The honour of Parliament made no alteration in the drefs of Mr Elwes : on the contrary, it feemed, at this time, to have attained additional meannefs-and nearly to have reached that happy climax of poverty, which has, more than once, drawn on him the compaffion of those who paffed by him in the street. For the Speaker's dinners, however, he had one fuit, with which the Speaker, in the courfe of the feffions, became very familiar. The minifter likewife was well acquainted with it; and, at any dinner of oppofition, still was his apparel the fame. The wits of the minority ufed to fay," that they had full as much reafon as the minifter to be fatisfied with Mr Elwes, as he had the fame habit with every body." At this period of his life, Mr Elwes wore a wig. Much about that time, when his parliamentary life ceafed, that wig was worn out; fo then, being older and wifer as to expence, he wore his own hair, which, like his expences, was very fmall. All this time the income of Mr Elwes was increafing hourly, and his prefent expenditure was next to nothing; for the little.pleasures he had once engaged in, he had now given up. He kept no houfe, and only one old fervant, and a couple of horfes; he refided with his nephew; his two fons he had stationed in Suffolk and Berkshire, to look after his refpective eftates; and his dress certainly was no expence to him; for, had not other people been more careful than himself, he would not have had it even mended. When he left London, he went on horfeback to his country feats, with his couple of hard eggs, and without once ftopping upon the road at any house. He always took the most unfrequented road; but Marcham was the feat he now chiefly vis fited; fited; which had some reason to be flattered with the preference, as his journey into Suffolk coft him only two-pence halfpenny, while that into Berkshire amounted to four-pence ! As Mr Elwes came into parliament without expence, he performed his duty as a member would have done in the pure days of our conftitution. What he had not bought, he never attempted to fell; and he went forward in that ftraight and direct path, which can alone fatisfy a reflecting mind. felt there were people to live after him-who wifhed to deliver unmortgaged to his children, the public eftate of government, and who felt, that if he suffered himself to become a penfioner on it, he thus far embarraffed his posterity, and injured the inheritance. Amongst the smaller memorials of the parliamentary life of Mr Elwes may be noted, that he did not follow the custom of members in general, by fitting on any particular fide of the houfe, but fat, as occafion prefented itself, on either indifcriminately; and he voted much in the fame manner. (To be continued.) In one word, Mr Elwes, as a public man, voted and acted in the House of Commons as a man would do, who SIR, To the-Publisher. Canongate, 29th March 1790. HAVING it in a AVING left my native city many years ago, you will not be furprised, on my return, to hear that I was in raptures with the New Town particularly, which exceeds in beauty and magnificence all thofe I have yet vifited, though I have travelled pretty extenfively in Europe, Africa, and America. The plan is elegant, it has a charming regularity, without the infipidity of Philadelphia. The bridges and the mound, have fo aftonishingly changed the appearance of Old Edina, that I fcarce can bring to my recollection the places, which at my departure were most familiar to me in my youthful days: were but thefe Luckenbooths demolished, and the bridge over the Cow. gate, oppofite the High Church, compleated, which I am informed is part of the prefent plan of improvement; it would, perhaps, be one of the grand eft approaches to the grandeft street in Europe, from the Brifto Port in a a ftraight line thro' between Brown's and Argyle Squares, removing the fouth-eaft angle of the Parliament Houfe; and building it in a straight. line fouth equal with the rest of the building, would be no great expence, and that part where the Lords of Seffion hold their Court, facing the ftatue of Charles the Second, with the steeple of the High Church, would be a most noble termination, and a fpacious and elegant opening to the High Street by two paffages, one above the church, and the other by the prefent, which is below the church facing the Exchange. There is likewise feeiningly a great want of a commodious ftreet from the Grafsmarket to the High Street, which might be accomplished to great advantage, terminating with this New Bridge, in an oblique direction, from the Cornmarket in the Grafsmarket, to the High Church, along the fide of the hill, and where I believe there are only old shabby houses at present. - When the entrance to the N. Bridge is widened, it is to be supposed that Milne's Court will be left open to correfpond with the new fquare oppofite, which will have a grand effect; the the Nether Bow is a great eye-fore where the projections of old houfes on the north fide obftruct the view, with their irregular and shabby appearance as far as Leith wynd. The weigh-house is a difgrace to architecture and stands as a monument, like Lady Nicholfon's pillar of obftruction. The fite of the North loch is ftill difgufting below as well as above the Bridge; the baluftrades of the Eaft fide ought to be filled up, like thofe of the Weft; they are only meant to fhow a beautiful ftream, not flaughterhoufes or fwamps of noxious and difagreeable appearance. A row of houfes would have a good effect from the Mound to the Meat-market, and would hide thofe fhabby buildings which are a difcredit to the back part of the High Street, and which face that elegant row called Prince's Street in the New Town, and the ground might be laid out with beauty and advantage, in the valley between. them. These are the principle defects which at prefent ftrike and difguft the eye of a ftranger: there are other defects in the dress and appearance of the lower clafs, especially the females, who are not fo captivating as thofe of our Southern neighbours, and who from a more intimate knowledge and intercourfe with them will naturally improve; for at prefent they have a loofe and dirty flovenly appearance, which, with their language, defeats even the inhabitants of St Gilefes in London. My next perambulations fhall be to the outskirts of this town and Leith, and if they are not confidered as too fevere by you, they may have fome little effect, which will amply reward one who has the profperity of Edinburgh fincerely at heart, and oblige your's, A SCOTSMAN. W Directions for the Discovery of Coal *. HEN gentlemen wish to know if there are appearances of coal in their eftates, they should, in the first place, make themselves well acquainted with the appearances and characters of the various ftrata which commonly accompany coal. Thefe characters and appearances I have defcribed above: And, fecondly, they fhould make themfelves acquainted with the various fymptoms and indications of a feam of coal, which I have now under confideration. When they have acquired these two branches of knowledge, their business is to walk up and down, and carefully to examine all the ravines, gullies, rivulets, fcars, and ditches in their eftates, with fuch rocks and precipices and o ther places where the fuperficies of the ftrata may be seen. I have faid above, and I know it to be truth, that there are few amufements more pleasant, entertaining, and agreeable, perhaps there are none that foothe, enlarge, and elevate the mind like refearches of this kind. It is in these scenes that we difcover what the folid fuperficies of our globe is compofed of, and how it is formed; and the variety which we behold, and the difcoveries which we make, are a never-failing fource of pleasure and entertainment to an inquifitive and intelligent mind; and it is in these broken fcenes of nature that we have the greateft chance of making mineral discoveries of various kinds, and particularly From the Natural History of the Mineral Kingdom. By John Williams, Mineral Surveyor. |